Page 21 of The Beast

Angelo growls. “What if that bastard did this? We don’t know, we haven’t spoken for over a year, if not longer. How do we know what hell he put her through?”

I fall silent because he has a point. None of us can possibly comprehend what Winter has been through and this could be Massimo’s work. I wouldn’t put it past him.

“We must pray she gets her memory back.” I say with a sigh. “She’s in the right place for that.”

The doctor heads outside and shakes his head as we crowd around him.

“She’s lost her memory; it’s quite common in head trauma cases and may take a few days or weeks to return. We’ll keep her in for a few days and run some tests, but she’ll need your help.”

“Name it.”

I interrupt because I will do anything to bring her back to us.

“Talk about happy times. Her past, memories you share. Remind her who she is, and it may spark a memory. When she leaves, take her to familiar places. They may trigger them. It could be a long road and parts of it may never return, but she needs help.”

“She’ll have the best help there is.”

Angelo grinds out in a firm voice and the doctor sighs again. “Just take it easy on her. Which brings me to a question I must ask.”

“What question?”

I look at him hard and he shrinks a little. “She thinks she’s in trouble and will be punished. Is there anything you can tell me about that?”

It’s possible Angelo is about to tear this hospital apart with his bare hands as he growls, “The fucking bastard.”

The doctor looks worried, and I say angrily, “It’s her husband. You’ll find the term is domestic abuse.”

The doctor nods. “I see. Where is her husband now?”

We both nod and say in unison, “In hell doctor, her husband is in hell.”

To his credit, he just smiles and nods toward Winter’s room. “Then I’ll leave her in your capable hands. I’m guessing it explains the bruising to her face and throat. Maybe I should report this to the cops.”

His voice trails off as we fix him with our darkest looks and Angelo growls, “No cops. It’s been dealt with.”

The doctor edges away and clears his throat. “Of course, well, as I said, we’ll monitor the situation, but I expect she’ll be discharged in a few days with, or without her memory.”

As he heads off, Angelo turns to face me with Satan’s fury blazing from his eyes and spits, “Massimo had better still be alive because I want to murder the fucking bastard ten times over.”

“I’ll get an update from my grandfather. I’ll tell him to keep him warm until we get there.”

Angelo nods. “The most important thing right now is my sister. We’ll take it in shifts watching her. I’m trusting no one else.”

“I’m not leaving her.”

“And you think I want to?”

He stares at me with a hard expression that I throw right back at him, causing us both to grin at the same time.

“Fine.” He throws up his hands. “I’ll head back to Jasmine and fill her in. Get her to pack a few things for Winter and then you can head off and grab some sleep.”

“I’m staying.”

He rolls his eyes. “Then I’ll get her to pack a bag for you, too.”

He heads back into Winter’s room, and I give them a moment because I understand his claim on her is far greater than mine.

As I wander to the vending machine, I select a coffee and wait, pulling out my phone to check my texts. The first one is from my grandfather.

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